


My Lifeline

by BloopWrites



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Childhood Friends, Confessions, Cuddles, Cute, Diary/Journal, Fluff, Holding Hands, How Do I Tag, Idiots in Love, Insecurity, Kidnapping, Kissing, M/M, Mutual Pining, Trauma, i love them
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 10:42:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 16,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29574771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BloopWrites/pseuds/BloopWrites
Summary: Yamaguchi hadn’t been able to walk with Tsukishima this morning due to him picking up an extra shift before school at Shimada Mart. Tsukishima didn’t mind too much, he knew Yamaguchi was trying to save up more money. But… He felt a little off from the loss of his best friend. The silence had been deafening.
Relationships: Ennoshita Chikara/Tanaka Ryuunosuke, Kinoshita Hisashi/Narita Kazuhito, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, Takeda Ittetsu/Ukai Keishin, Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 6
Kudos: 57





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> One scene is based on a series @/kenmasdyejob did on TikTok [go follow them right now]  
> Also first post so I hope you enjoy

Yamaguchi hadn’t been able to walk with Tsukishima this morning due to him picking up an extra shift before school at Shimada Mart. Tsukishima didn’t mind too much, he knew Yamaguchi was trying to save up more money. But… He felt a little off from the loss of his best friend. The silence had been deafening.

Morning practice was very boring—unusually cold—but it was a pretty normal practice. To distract himself from Yamaguchi not being at his side, Tsukishima did what he did best. No, it’s not being a dick. It’s watching people.

Kageyama and Hinata were practicing their new combo, which was probably going to end with a fight, being the idiots they are. Tsukishima remembered how the other day he overheard two girls talking, not very quietly, about how they  _ ship  _ them together, after hearing that he didn’t know whether to gag or laugh.

They would be a horrible match-up, they’re always fighting and the relationship could easily turn toxic. As if to prove his point, the freak duo started fighting. Tsukishima rolled his eyes and focused his attention away from the two. He could see from the corner of his eye that Daichi had separated from Sugawara and Kiyoko and was going over to tell them off.

The others on the court at the moment were Nishinoya, Asahi, and Tanaka. Asahi had—nervously—asked Nishinoya to practice with him. Asahi spiking the ball with Nishinoya attempting to receive it. To be honest, it was a pretty good idea to help both of them improve their skills, but it was annoying how Nishinoya would yell and clap Asahi on the back anytime he got a ball past him. Tanaka would cheer on the two and when they needed a short break, he would do his spikes.

Tanaka was  _ very  _ obviously trying to show off. And although most would think he’s showing off for Kiyoko, Tsukishima knew better. Tsukishima was very observant and he’s spent a lot of time watching others so he notices a lot more than people would think. Because of this, he knew Tanaka was showing off for  _ Ennoshita _ . Not Kiyoko. Sure, he  _ could  _ be showing off for Kiyoko too, but Tsukishima noticed all the little glances Tanaka would send Ennoshita, and not Kiyoko, after a particularly good spike, checking if the other boy had seen it. And that’s not even scraping the surface of how obvious the boy is.

Speaking of Ennoshita, on the other side of the gym from Tsukishima was Kinoshita, Ennoshita, and Narita. The three who were often called ‘The Forgotten Trio’—said trio came up with that name themselves—were talking about whatever, probably homework or something. Tsukishima tried to focus and listen in on their conversation but the gym was too loud and they were too far away, so he just watched from afar but… he noticed something.

After a little bit of watching he realized that Ennoshita would, every once in a while, glance over at Tanaka with a soft smile on his face. And to enforce his thoughts, Kinoshita noticed Ennoshita staring and nudged him with  _ that _ kind of look on his face, you know the one. Narita noticed too and, with a smirk, said something to Ennoshita. Sadly, it was inaudible to Tsukishima, but that something caused Ennoshita to blush quite brightly, Tsukishima didn’t think he would ever see Ennoshita blush, and Ennoshita slapped Narita’s arm. The Trio all laughed and Tsukishima almost laughed with them. He saw Tanaka look over at them, almost getting hit by a runaway ball.

Tsukishima snorted.  _ ‘So Plain Face likes 8-Ball back. I assume Cubone and Narita already knew.’  _ “U-um, Tsukishima?” Tsukishima nearly jumped out of his skin and he whipped his head around and saw that hamster girl.  _ ‘What was her name again?’  _ He couldn’t care to attempt to remember. “What do you want?” Tsukishima almost felt bad when he saw her flinch back at his tone. Almost. “O-oh um- I was wondering if Tadashi was okay, it’s not usual for him to skip practice…”

The use of Yamaguchi’s first name paired with Hamster Girl’s voice put a nasty taste in his mouth. He knew Hamster Girl had a crush on Yamaguchi. He also knew that Yamaguchi had a crush on someone. Who it was, Tsukishima had no idea. He had tried to figure it out but the boy only hung out with him and even though the mystery person would be talked about often, Yamaguchi never told identifying details about them. All he could figure out was that they were a boy, which happened by Yamaguchi slipping with the gender-neutral pronouns he had been trying to use. As well as the fact that Yamaguchi was very  _ very _ in love, but that was obvious.

As he was about to answer Hamster Girl, in a most likely snarky manner, someone flew into his arms, wrapping their own arms around his waist tightly, and he nearly fell over with the sheer force of the hug. Before he could tear whoever it was off of him, a familiar—and loud—“Tsukki!~ I missed you!!” came from the person in his arms. Tsukishima immediately relaxed after realizing that it was just Yamaguchi.

He put his arms around the boy as said boy straightened up a little, smiling brightly. “Good morning, Tadashi. What happened to your shift?” Yamaguchi chuckled a little, and probably would have rubbed his neck awkwardly, like he does, if his arms weren’t currently tightly around the taller blonde. Tsukishima subconsciously noticed how the gym didn’t feel cold anymore. “Well… Shimada was pretty mad when he found out I was skipping practice for it so he moved my shift to after school. Oh! If you don’t mind, would you stay with me during my shift? I told Shimada about… Um- and he said he doesn’t mind if you stay, just as long as I don’t slack off and tell him if something happens.”

Yamaguchi looked at him hopefully. Tsukishima knew he hated being alone during work, Tsukishima probably hated him being alone even more. He hated not being close to Yamaguchi and to add to it, he knew that there were often girls, sometimes boys, that would creep on him, Yamaguchi was bad at handling those situations. Tsukishima was getting pretty good at handling it for him. “Of course. But if your shift changed, why are you so late? I know you left early but practice is almost over and school’s going to start soon. D-did something happen?”

“No, no, It’s okay… I kinda got lost on the way to school, guess I don’t really pay attention when I’m walking with you.” He laughed again and Tsukishima couldn’t help a small smile. “You’re helpless without me. But you need to pay more attention.” Suddenly remembering that Hamster Girl was still standing next to them, probably looking very awkward. He glanced at her, and she was indeed looking  _ very _ awkward. It took everything in him not to burst out laughing. Not breaking eye contact with Hamster Girl, he leaned down to whisper in the boy’s ear, “We have company.”

Yamaguchi flushed and turned around but did not let go. Tsukishima didn’t let go either but he did loosen his grip a little. Yamaguchi immediately apologized to Hamster Girl, “Ah- sorry, Yachi!”  _ ‘Ah. So that’s Hamster Girl’s name. Yachi.’  _ Tsukishima hated it. And how it sounded in Yamaguchi’s voice. Awful. He should convince Yamaguchi to call her Hamster Girl as well. He probably could. He realized he wasn’t listening and started to pay attention to the conversation in front of him. “-‘s okay! You were clearly…” She shot a look to Tsukishima that he could’ve sworn was a glare, “… _ preoccupied.” _

Yep. There was  _ definitely _ some hate in there directed towards Tsukishima. Yamaguchi reached for Tsukishima’s hand and gave it a quick squeeze. Tsukishima squeezed back.

As if sent from heaven to stop this tense conversation, Coach Ukai and Daichi declared that practice is over for the morning. Tsukishima wanted to be as far away as possible from Hamster Girl as soon as possible so he walked quickly to the club room, Yamaguchi right behind him, neither of them bothering to say bye to Hamster Girl.

Tsukishima noticed a sticky note on his bag as soon as they walked in. “Not in my locker today?” Yamaguchi laughed, rubbing his neck “Ah, no, not today. I forgot to write one yesterday and was in a hurry today so it’s probably a little messy.” Tsukishima picked it up, and yes, it was slightly messy but was still beautiful.

Today’s note contained a drawing of what looks like a test paper marked with a 100% score with a spiky word bubble saying, _If you ace today’s test I’ll buy you cake! <3 _There was also a drawing of a slice of cake with a doodle that Tsukishima knew was him at the bottom. Yamaguchi had amazing drawing skills and Tsukishima really liked Yamaguchi’s handwriting, it was a little messy but also very neat, it was weird but Tsukishima loved it.

“It looks great as always, Tadashi. I’ll try my hardest on the test.” Before he knew what he was doing, he pressed a kiss to the boy’s forehead. They both froze and Tsukishima quickly pulled away. “Oh- Um. Sorry.” Both boys were blushing darkly and refused to look at each other. Yamaguchi mumbled out, “I-it’s fine.”

Tanaka burst into the room, as he always does, he exclaimed loudly, “What was all that abou-” He noticed the sticky note before Tsukishima could put it away. He chuckled, his whole attitude changing. “Ohoho~ Tsukki’s got a love confession note.” And, to be fair, the note  _ was _ pink, like most confession notes were. “Don’t call me that, and it’s not a confession note idiot.” Tsukishima tried to keep it out of reach from Tanaka but now Nishinoya was helping too.

Tanaka successfully took the note from Tsukishima and cleared his throat dramatically, getting ready to read it out loud, Nishinoya watching from over his shoulder. They read it with a focused face before a look of realization crossed. Tsukishima knew that what they thought it was, was most likely completely wrong. They both looked up at Tsukishima and, surprisingly in unison, spoke very confusedly, “You have a girlfriend?”

By now, the other members of the team were all in the club room and most turned around, suddenly intrigued by the conversation. Tsukishima rolled his eyes, very annoyed by the two second-years. Behind him, Yamaguchi was silently thanking that he was hidden from the view of others.

Tsukishima sighed and snatched the note back, placing it carefully into his bag. “No, you  _ idiots. _ I don’t have a girlfriend.” Under his breath, he continued, “I don’t even like girls.” He wasn’t as quiet as he thought and everyone heard him, they all turned to look at him, including his best friend. Tsukishima froze as he realized they heard him. “You’re gay…?” Tanaka spoke softly.

Something in Tsukishima snapped and he whipped around to face the others, “What?! Don’t act like most of you aren’t gay as well! Tanaka and Ennoshita are obliviously in love with each other,” The mentioned boys looked at each other before quickly looking away. Tsukishima continued, “Asahi has an obvious crush on Nishinoya,” Asahi avoided the gaze of Nishinoya. “Gods sake, I’ve even caught Daichi and Sugawara making out in the club room!”

No one was stopping him, Tsukishima was silently pleading from his mind for someone to tell him to shut up, to punch him, slap him, just  _ something _ . Sometimes Tsukishima hated how easily he read people and how observant he was, how he could find out so much about one person just by looking for a few minutes. “And Tadashi!” Tsukishima’s voice cracked. “Tadashi is so madly in love with some stupid random dude-” His voice got a lot softer, “Some  _ stupid _ dude…”

Tsukishima turned back around to face his bag. He put his face in his hands, his elbows resting on the shelf. He sighed heavily and he felt a hand on his shoulder. “Just- give me a second, Tadashi. Please. I’m sorry.” Yamaguchi rubbed his back for a second before pulling away hesitantly. Tsukishima sat on the ground and listened as the others shuffled around, getting changed, getting their stuff, and exiting.

Yamaguchi was the last to leave, he placed his hand on Tsukishima’s back again, whispering something he couldn’t quite make out, before leaving and finally Tsukishima was alone in the club room.

Tsukishima let out a shaky breath. He leaned back onto his back. “FUCK” He ran his hands through his hair. He felt a tear go down his cheek and he wiped it away annoyed. “What a stupid thing to cry over.” He laid there for a little while before his eyes widened and he hurried to the door, trying to be as quiet as possible. He slowly opened the door and he was right. Yamaguchi was sitting beside the door. “What are you doing?” Yamaguchi flinched, he didn’t think he would be caught. “Ah, Tsukki-” “I thought I told you not to wait for me? You’re late for class, aren’t you.”

Yamaguchi stood up and rubbed his neck awkwardly, “Well, I wanted to make sure you were alright…” There was a few seconds of silence before Tsukishima gently pulled Yamaguchi into a hug. “Uh… Tsukki?” The taller boy didn’t say anything, just held him tighter and nuzzled his face into the crook of Yamaguchi’s neck. Tsukishima wasn’t usually a clingy person. But. Sometimes he  _ needs  _ to be with Yamaguchi. Yamaguchi wrapped one of his arms around the boy’s waist, his other hand going to Tsukishima’s hair, petting it gently.

Seeing his best friend so clingy reminded Yamaguchi of some times in the past when Tsukishima hugged Yamaguchi and simply just didn’t let go.

Like when they found out about Akiteru lying, Kei hadn’t left the other for three or four days. Or when Yamaguchi had been kidnapped, they both hid in Tsukishima’s bedroom for a couple of weeks. Not to mention when Yamaguchi had attempted “The Forever Sleep”… Tsukishima had  _ refused  _ to leave his side for more than a month. Both boys still get panic attacks, or awful nightmares every once in a while. 

They stood there for a while. Yamaguchi spoke softly, “Do you want to talk about it?” Tsukishima shook his head, his voice a whisper. “Please don’t make me…” “I would never. We can wait until you’re ready.” Yamaguchi noticed the boy was slightly trembling. “Hey… It’s okay, the others don’t hate you, I promise.”

“Do you?” Yamaguchi looked down at the boy who refused to look at him. “What?” Tsukishima pulled himself closer to the boy, hiding. His voice cracked a little, “Do you hate me?” Yamaguchi took Tsukishima’s face in his hands gently and tilted his head. “Kei, will you look at me?” Tsukishima took a deep, but shaky, breath and finally made eye contact with the other. Yamaguchi noticed his eyes were just slightly teary. He rubbed Tsukishima’s cheek with his thumb gently. “I could never hate you, Kei.  _ Never. _ ”

Tsukishima has never wanted to kiss Yamaguchi more than right now. But he didn’t. Because Yamaguchi was in love with that mystery boy. Tsukishima put his head back into Yamaguchi’s chest. “I’m sorry I called your mystery boy stupid, I’m sure he’s very smart.” Yamaguchi laughed softly. “It’s okay, he is kinda stupid sometimes.” That made Tsukishima laugh just slightly. “Aha! I got you to laugh! But- if it would you make you feel less like he’s a mystery, I could tell you some more about him?”

Tsukishima nodded, “Yeah… I think that might make me feel a little better. I’ll get to judge whether or not he’s good enough for you.” Yamaguchi snorted, “I sure hope he is. Here, let’s sit down first.” They separated, Yamaguchi wiping away a tear from Tsukishima’s cheek before they sat side by side. Tsukishima rested his head on Yamaguchi’s shoulder.

“So tell me all about the boy who stole your heart.” Yamaguchi slung an arm around the other’s shoulder, “Well… as you know, he can be a little dumb. But- He can also be really nice… to me at least. He has the best smile and laugh. Um… He plays on the volleyball team-” Tsukishima looked at him, almost offended, “ _ Please _ tell me you aren’t in love with Hinata or Kageyama, I would never be able to look you in the eyes again.” Yamaguchi looked at him with the same level of offense on his face, “Tsukki! How could you say something like that! Ugh- Just thinking about it is gross.”

They laughed and a bell rang in the distance. “Huh.” “I didn’t think we were here for so long.” Tsukishima sighed, “I don’t want to go to class today.” He shifted and rested his head on Yamaguchi’s lap, “We should just stay here forever.” After a second he added, “Or at least until classes are over so we can go to Shimada’s for your shift.” Yamaguchi hummed and started to play with the boy’s hair, “That sounds great, honestly.”

“So tell me what you did during practice while I was gone.” Tsukishima stretched as he spoke, “I didn’t do much, just kinda watched everyone.” Tsukishima closed his eyes, slowly melting further into Yamaguchi. “Did you learn anything new today from watching?” Tsukishima nodded, “Yeah, um… so we knew 8-ball liked Plain Face, but today I found out Plain Face likes him back, for whatever reason. Cubone and Nar-” Yamaguchi cut him off, “Wait, wait. Who’s Cubone? That’s a new name.” Tsukishima opened his eyes again, “Oh. I thought I told you, it’s Kinoshita. By the way, we need a name for Narita, I can’t think of anything.”

“Noted, I’ll think about it. Continue.” Tsukishima closed his eyes again. “Okay, so they already knew,  _ and _ I suspect Kinoshita and Narita are dating or at least like each other. I have no proof yet but I’m working on it.” Yamaguchi hummed, “Yeah I can see it. Anything else?” Tsukishima almost shook his head before suddenly remembering with a laugh, “Oho~ You’ll like this one,”

"Ooh, pray tell.” “Coach and Takeda are at  _ least _ hooking up.” Yamaguchi gasped. “I know right? I saw them sneak off during practice. Now I’m  _ not _ saying Takeda sucked Coach off… All I’m saying is when they came back, Coach was looking a little  _ too _ happy, and Takeda’s hair was messed up, he also had hickeys. He was  _ not _ good at covering them.” He let a beat of silence go before adding, “Plus, I heard them through the wall.” They both burst out laughing. “No fucking way!” Yamaguchi always liked to hear about what Tsukishima had been able to figure out, but this was definitely going in the top selection.

Tsukishima smiled, “You have a very pretty laugh.” Yamaguchi blushed slightly. “Thanks, Tsukki.” Tsukishima wiggled a little and nuzzled closer to the boy. “Are you cold?” He nodded and Yamaguchi took off his sweatshirt, handing it to the other. Tsukishima put it on, sighing in content as warmth—and the smell of Yamaguchi—immediately washed over him. Yamaguchi always smelled amazing and Tsukishima pulled the neck of the sweatshirt up to his nose before sitting back at the boy’s side. “Thanks, now lay down. We’re taking a nap.”

Yamaguchi laughed and started shifting to lay down, “Whatever you say, boss.” Tsukishima laid next to him, wrapping his arms around the boy, practically using him as a body pillow. Said body pillow had one arm wrapped protectively around Tsukishima, hand resting at the back of his head, fingers threaded into his hair. Yamaguchi’s other hand, comfortably placed on his own stomach.

Tsukishima fell asleep quickly but Yamaguchi had a little more trouble. Eventually, they were both peacefully asleep. Surprisingly, they were still asleep by the time classes were out. Hinata and Kageyama were the first ones to the club room—as usual—and were the ones to find the sleeping boys, Hinata gently shook Yamaguchi’s shoulder. Yamaguchi woke up, thanking Hinata and asking them if they would tell the others that they won’t be at practice.

Hinata and Kageyama agreed and Yamaguchi thanked them again. He turned and gently woke up Tsukishima, telling him that they had to go. Tsukishima stood up sleepily, glaring at Kageyama and Hinata before he and Yamaguchi set off for Shimada’s store. 

Yamaguchi held Tsukishima’s hand as they walked, leading the boy around. After he had woken up a little more, Tsukishima called out to Yamaguchi teasingly, “Don’t get us lost~” Yamaguchi turned around with a pout, “Tsukki, you’re gonna make me paranoid!”

*-*-*

When they got close to Shimada’s, Yamaguchi dropped Tsukishima’s hand and ran ahead. This was the normal routine, Yamaguchi going ahead so he could open up the store if needed and get his apron. By the time Tsukishima entered the store, Yamaguchi was talking with Shimada. He walked over and wrapped his arms around Yamaguchi’s waist, resting his chin on his shoulder, and listened to their conversation.

Shimada spoke first, “Isn’t it early for your shift? I wasn- Are you skipping practice  _ again _ ?” Yamaguchi was bad at lying to people, especially adults, so Tsukishima responded for him, “Practice was canceled today, something happened during morning practice so everyone thought it best to cancel.” Shimada still seemed a little suspicious but shrugged, “Alright then. I’ll be in the back if you need anything. And I meant what I said, Tadashi.”

Shimada left and went to the back. Tsukishima turned to Yamaguchi, their faces inches apart, and they both flush, pulling away quickly. Tsukishima coughed awkwardly, “Sorry- But what did he say that he meant? I swear- if he’s perving on you- I always knew he was no good-” He moved to go where the older man had gone but Yamaguchi stopped him with a hand on his chest and a short laugh. “No, no, Tsukki. It’s fine, he just wants me to tell him if I  _ do _ get perved on again.”

“Oh. Well, I’m still going to keep an eye on him. Something about him is off.” Yamaguchi laughed again and put his arm around Tsukishima’s shoulder, “You’re just jealous I’m talking to someone who isn’t you. You did the same with-” His voice got caught in his throat. “…Um. When I started to become friends with Yachi an-” Tsukishima looked at him confused, “Who’s that?” Now Yamaguchi was the confused one. “What do you mean? We were talking to her this morning. You know, short, blonde-” “Ohh, you mean Hamster Girl.” Yamaguchi stifled a snort, “ _ Hamster Girl _ ?” He laughed before continuing, “Ah~ You’re great, Tsukki. You know that?” Tsukishima looked away and blushed, “Obviously…”

*-*-*

They had been at Shimada Mart for about 3 hours by now. Yamaguchi was restocking the canned foods, Tsukishima sitting behind the cash register reading some magazine about something, he wasn’t paying much attention to the article. His gaze was focused on the other boy in the store. The bell by the door rang, indicating a customer came in. Tsukishima turned to greet them but his eyes narrowed as he immediately recognized the person, even with the ridiculous disguise.  _ ‘Naoko. That bitch.’ _

Naoko was a girl from their middle school and Karasuno who would follow Yamaguchi and Tsukishima around, constantly trying to get at Yamaguchi. She’s waited outside the gym for practice to end so she could corner Yamaguchi, and has tried threatening Tsukishima. When that didn’t work, she tried playing the victim for Yamaguchi to save, claiming that Tsukishima had  _ attacked _ her. She was a stalker and a psycho. They had been able to get away from her for a little but now she shows up  _ here _ ? Absolutely not.

Yamaguchi didn’t turn around so he didn’t see who came in, he just called over his shoulder, “One moment, I’m almost finished then I can help you!” She didn’t notice Tsukishima at the register, immediately going to the aisle next to the one Yamaguchi was in. Tsukishima rose from his seat, following her. She turned into the aisle with Yamaguchi in it and Tsukishima walked a little faster, still being as quiet as possible.

He was right behind her as she reached out to touch,  _ grab _ Yamaguchi. Tsukishima grabbed her wrist, his hold an iron lock on her as he leaned down next to her ear, “What the  _ fuck _ do you think you’re doing, Naoko?” She whipped around and raised her other hand to hit Tsukishima, the punch connected but he quickly grabbed that hand as well. Yamaguchi finally looked up and noticed the look in Tsukishima’s eyes, he backed up and slightly hid behind the wall the aisle made.

Naoko let out an ear-splitting scream and soon after, Shimada came running out from the back. She bit one of Tsukishima’s hands and stepped down on his foot _. _ He cursed, letting go of her. Yamaguchi came to his side, standing slightly between him and Naoko, examining his face and hand. Naoko ran into Shimada’s arms. “You  _ bitch!” _ Tsukishima took a step towards the girl but stopped as Yamaguchi put a hand on his arm gently.

Tsukishima looked down at the boy, apologizing and confirming he was okay. Both looked over when the older man spoke loudly, “Would anyone like to tell me what the  _ hell _ is going on here?!” Shimada sounded pissed but there was an obvious concern hidden underneath his voice.

Before either of the boys could get a word out, Naoko put on her act and started fake sobbing into Shimada’s shirt, “Sir, please help! I was just walking around when he attacked me! I was so scared-” “Cut the crap, Naoko.” Tsukishima hissed.

At her name, Yamaguchi’s eyes went wide and he froze in his place, breath hitching. Tsukishima noticed his reaction and gently moved the boy behind him. Yamaguchi grabbed onto the loose fabric of Tsukishima’s shirt tightly and rested his forehead on the taller’s back. Tsukishima could feel the boy trembling and reached a hand back for Yamaguchi to hold, he took the hand like it was a lifeline. Because it was.  _ Tsukishima  _ was his lifeline. Tsukishima spoke gently over his shoulder, telling the boy to breathe, it was going to be okay, that  _ he _ was going to be okay. His voice in great contrast to the fierce gaze directed towards Naoko.

Shimada held his own hand up to Tsukishima, silently telling him to hold on. “You may continue, Miss.” “As I was saying… I was so scared, I had no option but to fight back! You know how scary it can be for a woman, especially a teen girl like me!” Tsukishima scoffed and Naoko glared at him. “But can’t you see how terrified your poor worker is? You have to get this crazy man out of here!”

Shimada knew she had been lying as soon as she mentioned Tsukishima  _ attacking _ her. Of what he knew of Tsukishima, he knew he would never hit someone, especially a girl, without a very good reason. Then there was Yamaguchi being absolutely  _ terrified _ . And he knew without a doubt that Tsukishima was  _ not _ the cause of it.

“You know, Miss. I don’t appreciate being lied to, even more so when it concerns the safety of someone.” Naoko was about two—very shrill—words into her explanation of how she wasn’t lying before Shimada cut her off, “I’m going to stop you right there, I know for a  _ fact _ that that young man is not the cause of my employee’s fear. Trust me, I’ve heard hours and hours about how-”

“Shimada!” Yamaguchi squeaked from behind Tsukishima, making the latter laugh just the slightest bit and squeeze his hand. “Sorry- but anyway, even if he was, Tadashi is  _ very _ capable of getting away from him if he wanted. Now I’m going to give you one more chance to tell me the truth before I get you escorted out of here.”

Naoko huffed and spluttered, “I can’t believe you don’t believe me! What a bad shop owner!” “Actually,” Shimada said matter-of-factly, “I’m a great shop owner because I know my employee well enough to know the truth from what lies some  _ bumbling idiot _ spews. Now,” He let out a breath. “Tsukishima, will you please escort this…  _ nice _ , young lady out of my store?”

Tsukishima stifled a snort, “You got it, Boss.” He gave Yamaguchi’s hand another quick squeeze before letting go and walking over to the girl. He took both her wrists, spinning her around as if he was arresting her. “Walk.” He led her down the aisle—away from Yamaguchi—and she started yelling again, “Where are you taking me?! Are you kidnapping me?!” Tsukishima rolled his eyes, pushing where her knee bent and she fell to her knees. “No, you  _ idiot, _ why the hell would I kidnap  _ you? _ I’m making sure to keep you away from Tadashi. And, you shouldn’t talk big about kidnapping.  _ Don’t think I forgot. _ ”

He pulled her back up and pushed her to start walking again. Once again, she was yelling. “He’ll never love you, you know!” Tsukishima muttered out, “I know that.” and grunted as she twisted to get away, to no avail of course. “He doesn’t want you!” She twisted again, getting one hand out of the grip. She reached her hand to successfully claw at his face, Tsukishima winced but grabbed her wrist again. He yanked her back, beginning to get pissed, and yelled back, “He doesn’t want you either! Now,” He huffed out a breath, “ _ walk _ .”

They got to the entrance and Tsukishima pulled her close, growling into her ear, “If you  _ ever _ come  _ anywhere _ near him again… I will rip your teeth out of your skull and shove them down your  _ fucking throat _ .” He let go and pushed her out the door. “Now run along and don’t come back. I meant what I said.”

After he made sure that the girl was leaving and far away enough down the road, he hurried back to the others, almost tripping over some box. He immediately pulled the shorter boy into a tight hug, wishing to never let go. “Um, Tsukki? You’ve been quite clingy today, are you okay?” Tsukishima looked at him incredulously. “Am  _ I _ okay?? Are  _ you _ okay? I can’t believe she came after you again! And at your  _ workplace _ ! I shou-” He could’ve kept rambling but the look on Yamaguchi’s face froze him. “Tsukki… I’m okay, just… a little shaken up.”

Tsukishima let out a shaky breath and pulled him back into the hug, burying his face into the boy’s chest. “I’m sorry. I’m _so_ sorry. It-it was like all my nightmares were coming true. I can’t stop thinking of what if she came this morning and got you, what if I wasn’t here-” Yamaguchi held his face in his hands, forcing the boy to make eye contact. “But you _were_. You _were_ here. _You saved me_.”

It took  _ every _ ounce of self-control Tsukishima had, to not kiss him right then and there.

“Um… Anyone want to explain to me who she was and why your reaction was… what it was?” They separated a little but not too much. Yamaguchi looked down at the ground as he spoke, “Do you remember a bit ago when I told you- um- about how I…” He was fiddling with his fingers and Tsukishima put a gentle hand over his. Yamaguchi made eye contact with him, taking a deep breath. “Um- got k-kidnapped?”

Shimada nodded and you could see the gears shifting in his mind before it clicked. He let out a breath and spoke almost to himself, “Holy shit- that was her?” Yamaguchi nodded, squeezing Tsukishima’s hand tightly as he vividly remembered what had happened.

The blindfold, as if he didn’t know who had taken him. Rope rubbing red marks around his wrists, his ankles, his stomach and thighs, god, even his neck. She had made sure he would not be able to run away. The patches of hair that took over a month to grow back. Being denied food and water unless he did what she asked. Screaming and begging with no one around to hear him. The  _ awful _ feeling of her lips on his. Terrible nails that dug into his skin until he bled. There are still some marks visible on some places of his body. He felt sick every time he saw them.

He could feel every  _ disgusting _ touch. 

He pulled out of his trance with a gasp. To his left is Tsukishima. Tsukishima. He let out a breath and stared down at their hands, fingers intertwined. His breathing slowly returned to normal. “You okay?” Yamaguchi nodded, “Y-yeah. Think I just kinda- You know?” Tsukishima hummed and squeezed his hand.

“I’m really sorry that happened, Tadashi. If you don’t mind, could you tell me who knows?” Shimada’s voice was gentle. “Well, there’s you and Tsukki. My parents don’t know too many details, I’ve only told Tsukki all the details… Oh! Mrs. Tsukishima and Akiteru know some as well. I’m not sure if any teachers or staff know at school. The team has no idea, I’m pretty sure they think I went on a trip with my family…”

“Thank you for trusting me and sharing this with me, Tadashi.” Yamaguchi nodded. “Of course.” There was a pause of silence before Shimada spoke up again. “You should take the rest of the day off. I can give you a ride if you’d like.” Yamaguchi shook his head, “Thank you but I think we’ll be okay.” Tsukishima nodded, “I’ll keep him safe, don’t worry. Plus, I’ve been looking for a good time to punch someone, so if someone comes to bother us-” He did a little punching motion, and that made Yamaguchi laugh softly.

“You should clean up your injuries first.” Tsukishima hummed, “Wanna play doctor, Tadashi?” Yamaguchi smiled and nodded, leading the taller to the chair by the cash register. Shimada started stocking things back on the shelf.

Yamaguchi grabbed the first aid kit. He wiped away the little pinpricks of blood from Tsukishima’s hand, a bite mark quite clear on his pale skin. Yamaguchi sighed as he placed a bandaid on the worst part of the boy’s hand. Tsukishima raised the hand to caress his cheek, Yamaguchi put his own hand over Tsukishima’s and leaned into the touch, eyes closing. They stayed like that for a little.

Yamaguchi opened his eyes, Tsukishima dropping his hand back to his lap. Yamaguchi hesitantly leaned down, wrapping his arms around the boy. A tight hug. Tsukishima wrapped his own arms around the other. He pulled just gently, hoping Yamaguchi would get the message. He did. He moved so he was sitting down, straddling the taller’s lap. Tsukishima adjusted the boy until they were both in a comfortable position. Yamaguchi rested the side of his face against Tsukishima’s shoulder and Tsukishima hooked his chin on Yamaguchi’s shoulder.

“Please don’t leave me…” “Never.”

Once again, they stayed there for a while. Not speaking. Just. Enjoying each other. Yamaguchi sighed as he finally stood back up, moving to work on the boy’s face. “Definitely bruising, probably gonna be pretty bad from the looks of it…” He touched the boy’s jaw gently and he winced, “Yeah, she may be small but she really packs a punch…” A beat of silence. “I’m sorry you got hurt because of me…” Tsukishima grabbed his wrist, a stark contrast in pressure than when he held Naoko’s wrist, this time it was more like his grip was a bracelet. “Don’t be sorry, I would do  _ anything _ for you. I promise.”

Yamaguchi flushed. When he finished, there was already a semi-dark bruise on Tsukishima’s jaw from when Naoko punched him. Yamaguchi placed a bandage patch delicately on the boy’s cheek over the scratch. Tsukishima looked up at him, pouting, “Can you kiss it better?” Yamaguchi laughed and leaned over to press a soft kiss to the patch. “You big baby.”

“Wah. Wah.” Tsukishima said sarcastically before smirking, “Maybe I need to be fed~” He grabbed Yamaguchi’s belt loops, pulling him closer. Yamaguchi squeaked, blushing brightly, “Tsukki!” Tsukishima laughed, letting go of the boy. “Sorry, sorry. You ready to go?” Yamaguchi nodded.

Although both boys knew he was more than capable of doing it himself, Yamaguchi still asked, “Can you untie my thingy?” “Your apron?” “Yeah! That thing.” Tsukishima laughed and turned the boy around. He untied it and before he could stop himself, he kissed the small of the boy’s back. He would’ve thought Yamaguchi didn’t notice if it weren’t for the slight flinch and the tips of Yamaguchi’s ears were red.

Tsukishima wasn’t sure what drove him to do it again, but he did. This time was slightly higher. He placed his hands on the boy’s sides gently and continued to kiss up his spine. He untied the knot on his neck and noticed the boy’s breathing was slightly shallow. He kissed the nape of his neck, moving towards the spot where the shoulder and neck meet.

He bit Yamaguchi’s shoulder softly then moved to his collarbone, biting harder. Yamaguchi let out the softest of moans and Tsukishima became  _ painfully _ aware of the fact Shimada was still in the store and could probably hear everything the boys were doing and saying. “Shit…” He pulled away with a sigh.

“We’re heading out now, Shimada!” Tsukishima called to the older man. “Alright then! Be careful.” Tsukishima took Yamaguchi’s hand and they walked out of Shimada Mart. They were a bit down the road before Yamaguchi spoke, “Do you think Practice is still going?” Tsukishima nodded and they changed their route, now heading to Karasuno High School.

*-*-*

The walk was almost completely silent. As Karasuno appeared up ahead, Tsukishima spoke up, “So why did you wanna go to practice? I would’ve thought you’d want to go home.” Yamaguchi turned his head to the other with a little smile, “You have to show off your cool fight marks, Tsukki. Duh.” They both laughed and returned to peaceful silence.

*-*-*

They stood in front of Gym 2 and could hear volleyballs bouncing and cheers from inside. Yamaguchi took a breath and opened the door. A couple of heads turned to them, looked away, then did a double-take and turned back. Yamaguchi laughed behind his hand.

Sugawara and Hinata were the first over. Nishinoya, Daichi, and Asahi right behind them, the rest of the second-years and Kageyama coming over last. Tanaka laughed and hit Yamaguchi on the back slightly too hard, causing the boy to step forward. “Wow, Yams! You really went all out on Tsukishima!”

“He didn’t do it, idiot.” “Then who  _ did _ you start a fight with?” This time it was Daichi. Tsukishima rolled his eyes, “First of all, I had a good fucking reason,” Some of the team was a little surprised by his tone. “Second of all, it’s none of your business. And third,  _ I _ didn’t start it. She’s had it coming for years. Plus, I didn’t even hit her.”

Sugawara stepped forward and inspected his bandages. “A girl did this to you? Wow, she must’ve been really mad.” Tsukishima flinched as the third-year poked his cheek. “No. Just a bitch.” Sugawara bopped him on the head, telling him to watch his language. From his side, Yamaguchi laughed and spoke up, “I can guarantee Tsukki was more mad than her, I’m surprised he didn’t hit her or anything.”

Somewhere in the back of the crowd, Ennoshita asked, “Are you guys ever gonna tell us what the fight was about?” Next to him, Kinoshita added in a bored voice, “Or can we go back to practicing?” Tsukishima glanced down at Yamaguchi, studying him quickly then looked back at the rest of the team. “I think that’s a story for another day… But I guess you could say we were fighting over Yamaguchi. And no one forced you to stop and come over here.”

Daichi nodded and told them to go practice, they all went off in little groups. Tsukishima turned to face Yamaguchi, muttering something about how nosy people were but froze when he saw the shorter, immediately recognizing the look on his face. “I’ll go ask Coach. I’ll be right back, just breathe okay?” Yamaguchi nodded absentmindedly and Tsukishima quickly went to find Coach Ukai, not wanting to leave the other by himself for too long.

Coach was talking with Takeda when Tsukishima approached him. “Hey, Coach- Can me and Tadashi leave early?” The older men looked at him confused, Takeda speaking first, “You just got here- why do you need to go?” Tsukishima resisted the urge to just leave with Yamaguchi and responded calmly between gritted teeth, “ _ Because _ , Tadashi is close to having a panic attack.” The men looked over at the mentioned boy, Ukai opening his mouth to speak but Tsukishima cut him off. “Trust me. I’ve seen him go through enough to notice the symptoms. So. Please, let us go early.”

Coach Ukai looked at the boy once again before sighing and waved him off. Tsukishima bowed slightly and rushed back to Yamaguchi. He tapped the boy’s shoulders softly, “Hey, you still with me?” Yamaguchi’s eyes focused and he nodded. “Okay. Okay, good. Coach said it’s fine if we go, are you ready?” The boy shook his head and looked down. Tsukishima knew what he was saying. “It’s okay, I’ll carry you.”

He turned around and kneeled so Yamaguchi could get on his back. Once the boy was situated, Tsukishima stood and turned around, nearly stepping on that Hamster Girl. She squeaked and he rolled his eyes. “Pardon me, I need to leave and you’re blocking the way.”

“S-sorry! I just wanted to check on Tadashi…” She flushed red as she continued, “And… maybe talk with him a little…” Tsukishima resisted the urge to gag. He felt a soft tug on his sleeve from Yamaguchi. Tsukishima tapped his head against the boy’s, “I know, just gimme a sec to get rid of her, then we’ll leave.” His voice was a lot softer with Yamaguchi than when speaking with Hamster Girl.

He turned back to the small girl, “Look. He doesn’t want to talk and I need to get him out of here. Like  _ now _ . I will not hesitate to squash you like a  _ bug _ if it means he is okay, so I suggest moving. Also- stop calling him that. It’s pathetic and makes you look dumb.” He moved to pass her but she stopped him. “Why do you act like you own him? You don’t. And he can make his own decisions.”

He rolled his eyes and glared at the girl. This scene starting to feel like Deja vu. “I know I don’t own him. He is his own person and makes his own decisions. But when he is feeling unsafe and can’t move because he’s scared, I will do anything to help him feel safe. Which includes, but is not limited to,  _ bashing your skull in _ .” He slightly smiled at her reaction. “Now. Are you going to move, or are you going to take me up on my offer?” The girl moved to the side, glaring. “This isn’t over you know.” “Oh, of course not. I can’t wait till we meet next!” Tsukishima said with mock enthusiasm.

*-*-*

They walked in comfortable silence, Tsukishima gently rubbing Yamaguchi’s thighs. It was only when Tsukishima turned onto their street that he spoke up. “Tadashi? How are you holding up?” There were three taps on his shoulder. He hummed, “Don’t worry, we’re almost there. Okay?” Two taps on his shoulder.

He could tell Yamaguchi was tired and was close to falling asleep, and honestly, Tsukishima wasn’t surprised. It was a pretty eventful—and anxious—day for the smaller boy and he knew Yamaguchi probably hadn’t slept well, or at all, the night before.

They arrived at the Yamaguchi residence and Tsukishima helped the boy off his back. “Do you want me to stay over tonight? I know my mom won’t mind.” Yamaguchi took a breath and shook his head. “Are you sure? You know I don’t mind.” Yamaguchi nodded and shooed the boy. Tsukishima chuckled, “Okay, okay. I’ll go if you’re so eager to get rid of me. Get some good sleep okay?” Yamaguchi nodded with a little smile. He gave the taller a quick hug before disappearing into the house.

Tsukishima stayed outside for a few minutes. Waiting. His phone dinged in his pocket. He smiled and opened the message.

[Yama-Yama]

Tsukki… I lied…

[Yama-Yama]

Please come back and stay :(

He smiled at how well he knew his friend and typed in a quick message.

[You]

Open the door :)

Yamaguchi saw the message and a brief pause went before the door creaked open, Yamaguchi peeking through. “Fancy seeing you here, Tadashi.” Yamaguchi laughed and pulled the door all the way open, “You punk! I thought you left!” Tsukishima laughed too. “What? Did you really think I would leave you all by yourself? I know your parents aren’t home.”

Yamaguchi pulled him into another hug. “Thank you.” Tsukishima squeezed the boy in his arms before they separated. “I missed your voice.” Yamaguchi rubbed his neck, “Ah, s-sorry…” They walked into the house and headed to the smaller boy’s room as they spoke.“No, no- It’s okay. You don’t have to apologize. Besides, we managed just fine.”

Yamaguchi grabbed something off the end table. “I do think you were a little mean to Yachi though… Just a little. Maybe not.” Tsukishima laughed lightly, “Yeah, sorry… I wasn’t really thinking too much, I just wanted to get you out. But you have to admit she was a little snappy towards the end.” Yamaguchi nodded, “Yeah, I wasn’t expecting that from her… And thanks for trying so hard to get me out of there.”

“Of course.” By now they were at the entrance of Yamaguchi’s room. “You should take a shower.” Yamaguchi looked kinda hesitant. Tsukishima took his hand, squeezing slightly. “Don’t worry, I’ll be right here. I promise, Tadashi. Now go, I know it’ll make you feel better.” Yamaguchi sighed and nodded, “Yeah… Yeah, you’re right. I’ll be right back. Don’t leave, okay?”

Another squeeze of their hands before Yamaguchi grabbed some clothes and rushed off to the bathroom. As the boy ran off, Tsukishima went to sit on the bed, pulling out his phone.

A notebook on Yamaguchi’s desk caught Tsukishima’s eye.  _ ‘Huh. Did he get a new sketchbook?’ _ He stood up and walked over to the desk.  _ ‘I don’t think he’d mind if I took a peek.’  _ He opened up the cover, immediately smiling at the little doodles surrounding the words ‘Tadashi Yamaguchi’s, Please do not steal.’

He sat down at the desk and did a quick scroll through before freezing. This wasn’t a sketchbook. This was Yamaguchi’s diary. He quickly closed the book.  _ ‘I’m not going to invade his privacy like that.’ _

He stood up and went back to the bed, flopping down on it. He could hear Yamaguchi singing over the sound of running water. His eyes floated back to the desk. He shook his head.  _ ‘No. I will not do it. I will not snoop through his stuff.’ _ He picked up his phone again, hoping to distract himself.

A few minutes of mindless scrolling later, Tsukishima sighed and turned off his phone, standing up and moving back to the desk with that stupid book.  _ ‘I hate myself for doing this. I’m an awful person.’  _

As he flipped through the pages, it was all pretty normal things, retelling what had happened that day, a dream or nightmare every once in a while, doodles, the usual. But then Tsukishima came across a totally different section of pages.

_ This entry is gonna be different than usual… I haven’t been feeling good about myself lately so I thought maybe if I wrote down my insecurities it would help. There’s kind of a lot. _

_ -I hate my freckles so much. They look so dumb to the point I got bullied. They make me even more ugly than I already am. _

_ -My body is stupidly dumb. I’m lanky but not in the nice way Tsukki is. My hands look weird. I’m not fit like you would imagine a volleyball—Or any sport—player would be. I don’t have abs like Tanaka but I don’t have a nice flat stomach like Hinata. I don’t have cool arm muscles like Daichi, my arms are just there. My thighs are flabby instead of firm. _

_ -I’m the only first-year who’s not a starter. They’re all so much better than I can hope to be, even with Shimada helping me out, they’re just on a level I can never and probably will never reach. _

_ -No one notices me when I’m with the team. Everyone else gets people talking about them but never have people talked about me in the same way. Never the star, always an asteroid _

_ -The marks she left on me make me want to cry or throw up any time I see them. I’m sure no one will want me after what she did to me. Especially him. _

_ -There’s no way he would be able to find something good about me. I can’t even do it. _

_ -I feel like I’m invisible in my own skin. And sometimes I wish I was invisible to myself as well. _

_ I hate being myself. I hate how I look. My personality is probably shit. I have no idea why Tsukki is still hanging out with me. I’m so stupid and annoying and he deserves so much more than me. _

_ Sometimes I’ll daydream about some stupid kind of fairytale ending where I’m as pretty as a Disney Princess and the boy I love loves me back. But neither of those are true. I’m not Cinderella. I’m just Yamaguchi Tadashi. _   


“Tsukki?” Tsukishima’s eyes widened and he spun around. There Yamaguchi was, with damp hair and a new change of clothes. “Whatcha do-” Yamaguchi noticed the book in the other’s hands. “Oh. I-I can explain-” Tsukishima cut him off, “No, no, you don’t have to explain anything to me. Just- Just answer his question truthfully. Can you do that for me?” Yamaguchi nodded.

“Is this  _ really  _ what you think of yourself, Tadashi?” Yamaguchi rubbed his neck in that awkward way he did. “I mean… yeah.” Tsukishima couldn’t believe that the person he thought so highly of, thought so lowly of himself. “No- Tadashi, you-” He took a breath. This was not how he wanted to confess.

“You’re  _ beautiful, _ Tadashi.” Yamaguchi looked at him. “A-and you’re smart, and you’re talented, and you’re kind.” Tsukishima smiled to himself and spoke with a slight laugh, “Tadashi. You are SO _ , _ so kind.” For the first time in a long time, Tsukishima couldn’t read Yamaguchi. Tsukishima looked down and swallowed, “I’m sorry I’m mean. And I’m sorry you got stuck with me and the stupid shit I say or do. But selfishly, I’m not.”

He made eye contact with the boy again and let out a breath. “You know, the odds of existing are slim. So the odds of you and I existing at the same time must be next to impossible. I think that’s beautiful.” Tsukishima had a slight smile on his face.

“So maybe the universe does work in my favor after all. Because I got the  _ chance _ to get to know you. And never have I  _ ever  _ regretted meeting you, Tadashi. I don’t know why you’ve stuck with me for so long, but I am  _ so _ grateful you have.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I have no doubt in my mind that your mystery boy will love you.”

He looked back up and noticed Yamaguchi was right in front of him. Tsukishima looked at him confused as Yamaguchi held his jaw gently, being careful of the bruise. “You stupid, stupid boy.” Yamaguchi’s eyes flickered to his lips before pulling him closer until their lips finally,  _ finally _ met. Tsukishima could finally breathe. It was soft and short but it felt like  _ heaven _ to both the boys and Tsukishima wanted-  _ needed _ more of Yamaguchi.

Tsukishima quickly cupped the shorter boy’s face and pulled him back into a deeper kiss. Yamaguchi smiled into the kiss and matched Tsukishima’s desperation for more.

When they pulled away to breathe, Tsukishima spoke softly, “God. Do you  _ know  _ how long I’ve had to stop myself from kissing you? All because of that myste- Wait- You’re in love with mystery boy but you kissed me? What the hell?” Tsukishima looked at him accusingly. Yamaguchi rolled his eyes and laughed softly, “Let me tell you a secret.” He leaned in and whispered into Tsukishima’s ear, “You _ are  _ the mystery boy, dummy.”

He leaned back and smiled as it all clicked. Tsukishima sighed with a laugh and put his head on Yamaguchi’s chest, “Oh my god, I’m so dumb.” Yamaguchi patted his head, “Yes you are, but I love you anyway.”

They both froze before Tsukishima smiled stupidly and looked up at Yamaguchi, “I love you too, Tadashi.” This time it was Yamaguchi’s turn to smile stupidly. He kissed the blonde’s forehead, “I can’t believe I get to do that…” He did it again. And again. And again.

Tsukishima laughed, “Okay, okay~ I know I’m irresistible but we should go to sleep. I’m tired as all hell and I know you are too. There will be plenty of time for canoodling tomorrow.” Yamaguchi nodded, “Okay first,  _ never _ say canoodling again. Second, you’re right, I am also very tired. And third, Tsukki, it’s not even that late.” Tsukishima shook his head, “First, you can’t make me and second, don’t care. It’s sleep time.”

Yamaguchi laughed and allowed himself to be led to the bed by the other. Tsukishima laid down first and pulled Yamaguchi down towards him. They laid with Tsukishima’s chest to Yamaguchi’s back. The taller boy wrapped his arm around Yamaguchi, who held his hand and intertwined their fingers.

“I want you to know that I’ve made it my personal mission to get you to love everything on that dumb list, even the ones I didn’t see yet. I’m going to try to get you to see yourself how I do. Absolutely perfect.” He kissed Yamaguchi’s shoulder. “I will try my best to feel better about myself, Tsukki. I promise.”

For a while there was nothing but soft breathing to fill the silence. Then Tsukishima broke it with, “You do know I’m  _ SO _ going to rub this into Hamster Girl’s face right? Because you can’t stop me.” They both burst out laughing. “I would never try to stop you, it’s going to be great.”

*-End-*


	2. Chap 2 baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some backstory about their past and what happened with Naoko, clingy TsukkiYama[as they should], and all that good stuff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took a while to post, I got into a mode of not wanting to do anything but your comments helped a lot so thank you!  
> I hope you enjoy!

There was a knock on the door. Tsukishima groaned, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, and grabbed his glasses off the nightstand. He got up carefully, not wanting to wake up the sleeping boy next to him. A woman’s voice came through the door, “Tadashi? Are you awake?” Tsukishima opened the door and was face-to-face with his best friend’s— boyfriend’s?—mother.

He yawned, “Morning.” The woman had a mildly surprised look on her face, “Oh- Good morning, Kei. I didn’t know you were over, I would’ve let you boys sleep a bit longer.” She looked over the boy’s shoulder at her sleeping son. “It’s fine, we’re going to leave a little earlier anyways. And sorry for not saying I was coming over, yesterday was just a lot and I didn’t want to leave him alone.”

“What happened? If you don’t mind me asking.” Tsukishima ran a hand through his hair and sighed, “Naoko came for him again while we were at his job.” Yamaguchi’s mom gasped softly and a hand went to her mouth. “Really? Are you guys okay? Is  _ he _ okay?” Her eyes flickered back to the sleeping boy.

Tsukishima nodded, “Yeah, we’re okay for the most part. But he was quite shaken up even after I forced her out, I think he had like flashbacks or something too. He was close to having a panic attack at practice but I managed to get him out in time, one our managers wouldn’t let me pass. She has a crush on him and apparently  _ really _ wanted to talk to him. I convinced her to move with a good old fashioned threat.” They both laughed softly. “Well at least he’s okay… Are you?”

Tsukishima took a second to answer. “Yeah. I think so. Physically, I just got a few injuries which will heal in like a week or two. Don’t worry, he’s fine physically. I didn’t let her touch him.” She raised a hand to inspect the bandages as he continued. “Mentally… I don’t really know how I’m doing. There’s always a lot of things going on in my mind so there’s not really a way for me to know how I am. Am I making sense?” She nodded.

“I know how it is. Especially with everything that’s happened to you guys, you both are  _ so  _ strong and I’m  _ very  _ proud of you.” She patted his cheek and he smiled softly. “Thanks, Ayumi.” She ruffled his hair. “You should go wake up Tadashi.” She turned and walked away. 

Tsukishima turned and took a total of one step before almost running into something. That something happened to be a crying Yamaguchi Tadashi. He immediately went into ‘protect and comfort’ mode.

He took Yamaguchi’s hand, leading the boy to sit on the bed. “Hey…” He spoke in a soft voice. “What’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Yamaguchi sniffled a few times, trying to get the words out. “I-I thought you had left… I got scared and you weren’t there and that made me even more scared because you’re always with me except when you aren’t and when that happened, I got ki-kidnapped.”

Tsukishima pulled him into a hug, whispering into his ear. “Hey. Listen to me. I‘m not going anywhere. I will  _ always  _ be here for you.” He kissed the top of the boy’s head, rubbing his back gently. When Yamaguchi’s tears stopped, he pulled away slightly and Tsukishima wiped away what remained of the tears off his face.

Tsukishima kissed the tip of the other’s nose. “I think we should get some food in you. Does that sound good?” Yamaguchi sniffed again and nodded. Tsukishima smiled, “Okay. Let’s go get some food.” They stood and Tsukishima silently asked a question. Yamaguchi replied by grabbing the hem of Tsukishima’s shirt and looking up at the taller with wide eyes. Tsukishima nodded and led them down the hallway to the kitchen, Yamaguchi staying close behind, holding onto the shirt.

Ayumi rose from her seat as soon as she saw Tsukishima walk through the door frame. She knew Tadashi as well as Tsukishima did. She could tell from one glance, could tell from the feel of the air, that he had been crying moments ago. “Oh… Baby, what happened?”

Her focus was mainly on her son but her eyes flickered to Tsukishima for clues, knowing Tadashi might not want to be verbal at the moment. Tsukishima scooted over a little so the woman could see her son better. “Would you like a hug?” She opened her arms as Tadashi nodded and he stepped forward into her embrace.

Tsukishima walked away from the others, going further into the kitchen to make breakfast for the other boy. He could hear Tadashi and his mother taking a seat at the island bar as he cracked the eggs into a bowl. “Have you already eaten, Ayumi?” he called over his shoulder. “Yes, thank you though.”

He could hear her whisper something to Tadashi, followed by a squeak. He assumed it came from the boy and laughed softly. As he flipped the contents of the pan, he suddenly remembered he hadn’t texted his mom or Akiteru he was sleeping over last night. “Hey, Tadashi?” A hum sounded. That was good. “Will you do me a favor? Can you grab my phone? It should be on your desk.” The scrape of a chair against the floor. “Yeah, I got it.” The soft tapping of Tadashi’s socked feet as he went down the hallway.

Tsukishima waited until he knew the boy was far enough away before turning around quickly to face the woman, “Alright. What did you say to him? That was fucking adorable.” She knew he liked her son and had been expecting him to ask, a smirk disguised as a smile on her face. “I nudged him and said you would make good husband material.” Tsukishima turned slightly pink and she laughed.

He turned back to the stove as the soft tapping came back. “Here ya go, Tsukki! It was hiding under my notebook.” Tsukishima smiled at the smaller. Their lips brushed together. “Thank you, Tadashi.” A gasp came from the island and it clicked what they had done.

“Kei, you brat! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!” There was no time for him to even hear the sound of the chair against the floor before the woman was right beside him, bopping him on the head, before pulling her son into an excited hug. “Favoritism much?” Tsukishima huffed and she rolled her eyes, “Oh shush. We both know he’s your favorite too.” Both boys flushed.

Tsukishima turned to the almost finished food and the others went back to the island bar. He transferred the food from the pan to a plate, sprinkling some cheese over it. He cleaned the dishes as the cheese melted. When he finished, the cheese had melted so he picked up the plate, turning around and, very fancily, placed it in front of Tadashi.

“One omelette for one Yamaguchi Tadashi.” Tsukishima placed his chin on his hands, elbows on the island counter. “And might I say, you look absolutely  _ ravishing _ on this fine evening.” He smirked and winked dumbly. Tadashi rolled his eyes, “Oh shut up,  _ Kei _ .” Tsukishima choked. Tadashi smirked, loving his reaction. He took a bite of the omelette, grinning. “Mm~ This is so good, Tsukki! You always make such good eggs!”

Tsukishima smiled, taking one of Tadashi’s hands to fiddle with. “Glad you like it.” The other boy looked at him curiously, “Aren’t you going to eat something?” Tsukishima shook his head. “Not hungry.” Now the boy frowned and looked mildly concerned, Ayumi sported the same look. “I’m okay, Tadashi. I promise.” Tsukishima brought Tadashi’s hand up and kissed it softly before dropping their hands back to the table.

Tadashi cut another slice of omelette and held it in front of Tsukishima’s face. “One bite of omelette  _ and  _ you have to eat lunch today. Plus dinner if you can. Okay?” Tsukishima sighed, “Okay.” He leaned forward to take the egg off the fork. He opened his mouth to show he had actually swallowed it. Tadashi smiled and patted his head. “Good boy.” Tsukishima turned pink again. “Don’t say that- I’m not a dog.”

Ayumi looked between the two boys with a soft smile. She was confused when a tear fell down her cheek. Tadashi glanced at her, a slice of omelette on his fork just centimeters away from his mouth, then took a double take. “M-Mom? What’s wrong?” He placed a hand on her shoulder. She wiped the tear away with a half-hearted laugh. “I’m okay. It just… it makes me happy to see you boys so happy. You make each other happy—you have for years—but with all that has happened, especially this past year and with that  _ nasty _ little girl…”

She swallowed, “Seeing you like this, happy and teasing- it just reminds me of the past, when we didn’t worry so much. When you were little boys, playing with toys in the living room with a cartoon playing in the background. When Akiteru would watch you so me and Funai could talk in the kitchen. Or when you boys would watch a movie and end up falling asleep on the couch together.”

She let out a choked sob. “But it also made me realize how grown up you are. How close you are to leaving the house. To leaving  _ us _ .” She exhaled shakily. “Neither of you boys had a father growing up but me and Funai tried our best to fill that space, Akiteru doing what we couldn’t. We all tried.”

She looked up when Tsukishima put a hand on hers. “And you did an  _ amazing _ job.” he spoke softly. Tadashi gave her a tight but still gentle hug, and Tsukishima walked around the island to join them. Ayumi’s sobs shook her body. “I-I love you boys s-so much…”

They stayed like that until she stopped crying.

Tsukishima glanced at the clock on the stove and his eyes widened, “Shit- We’re late.” Tadashi looked up. They were indeed late. They hurried to collect their things. Tadashi kissed his mom’s cheek before dashing out of the house, yelling at Tsukishima to hurry up. Tsukishima hugged her quickly before following after the other boy.

As they ran down the street, Tsukishima sent a text to his brother.

[You]

SOrry for nt texting last n8ght

[You]

I stzyed at Tadshi’s ad wil ex0lain la6er

[Stinky Boi (Aki)]

I swear to god, Kei. If you’re drunk, I will kick your ass

[Stinky Boi (Aki)]

With affection of course

[You]

No, ‘m running id9ot

[You]

I’m la5e to p4actice

[Stinky Boi (Aki)]

Oh. Well hurry up then

[You]

I haye ypu

[Stinky Boi (Aki)]

Love you too ;*

Tsukishima rolled his eyes and called out to Yamaguchi, “Have I ever told you how much I hate Akiteru?” Yamaguchi laughed, “Nope! Can’t recall anything like that!”

*-*-*

They arrived at Karasuno and pulled the door of Gym 2 open. It looked like the team was just talking and hadn’t started. A few heads turned but just went back to what they were doing. Daichi and Sugawara came over, the shorter of the two talking first, “How are you guys? I’m surprised you showed up, I saw the way Yamaguchi looked right before you left.” Yamaguchi rubbed his neck, “Yeah, sorry about that…”

“It’s fine, it was clear you needed to leave, especially with how Tsukishima was about ready to trample Yachi.” Daichi spoke up that time. “Although, it would be nice if you told us why you showed up like that, Tsukishima was all pissed off and hurt and stuff and you were all panicky. Kinda concerning, ya know? I’m pretty sure the rest of the team was worried too. Especially a certain blonde manager of ours.”

Sugawara winked at Yamaguchi and Tsukishima rolled his eyes, pushing down the urge to just make-out with Yamaguchi to show that Hamster Girl wasn’t in the picture. He almost smiled when he realized Yamaguchi had internally rolled his eyes at Sugawara. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t talk about me like I’m not here. And he doesn’t need to tell you.”

There was a gentle hand on his wrist and Tsukishima found himself looking into Yamaguchi’s eyes. He softened his voice, “Are you sure? I don’t want you to push yourself to tell them. They’ll understand if you aren’t ready.” Yamaguchi took a breath and nodded.

Tsukishima let out a breath and spoke with a stern voice, although he still had that softness in his voice that only Yamaguchi got. “Okay. But do  _ not _ push yourself. We can stretch this out if necessary, it doesn’t have to be all at once.” Yamaguchi smiled and he hugged Tsukishima’s arm as the taller turned back to Sugawara and Daichi. 

“Okay. He wants to try to tell you all. But if he needs to leave, I will get him out. Understood?” Sugawara nodded, “Of course, Tsukishima. None of us want to make him uncomfortable.” Daichi spoke up, “We didn’t have anything too important planned for practice so if you’re both okay with it, Yamaguchi could tell us now?” Tsukishima looked down at Yamaguchi from the corner of his eye, studying him quickly. “He’s okay with it. So I am too.” Sugawara stared at him, curiosity and maybe amazement in his eyes. “It’s crazy how you can communicate so well without words- just like a  _ glance  _ and pow… I’ve noticed this for a while but wow, it’s so cool!”

Tsukishima let out a short laugh, “Well, we  _ have  _ known each other since we were… what- six years old?” He turned to Yamaguchi for confirmation. Yamaguchi nodded and so did Tsukishima. “Yeah, since we were six. Tadashi and his mom moved in down the street from my house and my mother arranged a playdate for us because I was ‘anti-social’” He rolled his eyes and did air quotes. Yamaguchi laughed, “You still are, Tsukki.”

Tsukishima couldn’t help letting a smile cross his face, turning to Yamaguchi. “There you are… Hi.” Yamaguchi smiled, “Hi, Tsukki. Now back to the story.” Tsukishima coughed, turning back to the older boys. “Right, sorry. So we had playdates and it took a little for us to click but once we did… We were practically inseparable.” He took a second before continuing, “We’ve been through kinda a lot together too… So I guess that helped to solidify our bond.”

“That’s…” Sugawara held a smile. “Really nice, Tsukishima. Really sweet too. But I had always thought you met in middle school…” Tsukishima and Yamaguchi shook their head almost in sync. Yamaguchi speaking up, “That’s actually a pretty common thing people think about us but no, we met earlier than middle. I guess we just don’t talk about our past that much…” “For good reason…” Tsukishima mumbled under his breath, only audible to Yamaguchi.

Yamaguchi squeezed his arm and tapped his head against the taller’s shoulder. “Yeah…” “Maybe those are stories for another day, for now we should gather up the others and then you can tell us about last night.” Yamaguchi nodded, Tsukishima noticed that, while Sugawara and Daichi went to round up everyone. Tsukishima tapped Yamaguchi’s chin to make the boy look him in the eyes.

“Don’t lose your voice okay, Ariel?” He knew the reference would make Yamaguchi smile, and it did. A lazy smile crossed Yamaguchi’s face, “I’ll try, Tsukki… But will you help if I do?” Tsukishima nodded, “Of course, Tadashi. I’ll be right here with you the whole time, okay? I’m not leaving.” Yamaguchi just wanted to fall into the boy and sleep. But he couldn’t. So he did the next best thing and leaned on him heavily. The taller’s arms wrapped around him.

Tsukishima held him like he was lighter than paper. “I’ve got you, Tadashi.” It was a whisper of a promise. “Thanks, Tsukki.” He closed his eyes and there was a gentle press of lips against his forehead. He could feel himself sink down and assumed Tsukishima had sat down.

He could hear footsteps at different pace and heaviness come closer, there were some words going around but he couldn’t focus on them. Not when Tsukishima existed. Not when Tsukishima was holding him like this. Not when Tsukishima was mumbling soft words to him—he couldn’t make out those words out either but that’s not the point—He took a deep breath and realized that Tsukishima smelled  _ amazing _ . He leaned in even closer.

He felt the taller tense up slightly and he opened his eyes, worried he did something wrong. He was relieved when he realized Tsukishima wasn’t mad at him. But he was mad. He was glaring at something,  _ someone _ . Yamaguchi turned his head and saw that Yachi had sat next to an empty space Yamaguchi assumed was probably for him when—if—he got off Tsukishima’s lap.

Yamaguchi resisted the urge to laugh. Seeing him so protective was adorable. He leaned up and kissed Tsukishima on the cheek. Causing the boy to whip his head back to Yamaguchi, a shocked look on his face. “You’re adorable, Kei.” Tsukishima turned red and buried his face into Yamaguchi. “Shut up.”

Someone coughed from the side of them. Yamaguchi turned and saw it was Sugawara. The older boy made a motion as if to tell him to start his explanation. “Right,” He turned around to face the poorly made circle of his teammates. They were all looking at him, some expectantly, some with bored looks. All the focus was on him. He couldn’t breathe. He whimpered.

A whisper right next to his ear, “You’re okay.”

A breath.

Thank god for Tsukishima Kei. The way they were positioned was so perfectly perfect. Tsukishima’s chin resting on his shoulder so he could talk to and reassure him without it having to reach the ears of the others. Tsukishima’s arms wrapped around him, rubbing comforting and grounding circles into his stomach with his thumb. Yamaguchi let out a breath, still slightly shaky.

“I-I wanted to tell you why I was panicking last night and why Tsukki was all beat up… And to do that I have to tell you a little about my past, Tsukki’s past. Please understand that this is a really difficult story to tell…” He started. “Last night, I had a shift at Shimada Mart and me and Tsukki saw someone from our middle school- She went to Karasuno for a little too. Um. S-She’s not a very friendly person.”

He swallowed thickly, “We first met her in our second year of middle. I didn’t notice it immediately, I thought she might’ve just had a crush on me but was shy. Tsukki noticed which isn’t surprising because, well, he’s Tsukki.” He let out a short laugh that was obviously laced with nervousness. “But anyways, at first it was just me catching her staring at me and she would often ask to hangout, but whenever I brought Tsukki with me to hangout she would get mad or just leave when she saw him.”

He started scratching at his skin but Tsukishima quickly shut that down with a gentle hand over his. “Relax, Tadashi. It’s okay.” Yamaguchi took a deep breath. “U-Um so we only hung out alone a couple times. After a while, Tsukki had noticed that she would follow us around from a distance and I had walked in on them fighting a couple times, verbally and physically… This continued until 3 or 4 months ago and she progressively got more aggressive towards Tsukki, even yelling at me to leave him because he was mean to her and ‘toxic’ for me.”

Yamaguchi’s breath caught and he cleared his throat. He could feel himself trembling and knew Tsukishima could feel it too. The blonde kissed his shoulder. “I- uh- I agreed with her one time and I got in this huge fight with Tsukki. The biggest one we ever had. I- I still feel  _ awful _ about that fight. I said some things I shouldn’t have. Things that were uncalled for.” His vision turned blurry as tears started building up. Tsukishima squeezed around his middle tight.

He placed a hand over Tsukishima’s. “Um, so after the fight I went to her a-and it was fine u-until it wasn’t-'' He broke and so did the gate holding back the tears. Body shaking as breath was limited. He furiously tried to wipe away the tears. Everyone held concerned looks on their faces.

Tsukishima turned the boy around so they were facing each other. He let Yamaguchi hide in his shoulder, resting a hand gently on his head. The boy was trembling. “It’s okay, I’ve got you, Tadashi. You’re safe.” he spoke softly into the smaller boy’s ear. He rubbed Yamaguchi’s back comfortingly. Everyone else in the poorly made circle stayed silent. Yachi wanted to reach out to Yamaguchi but the look Tsukishima sent her way kept her frozen.

“Do you want me to continue for you, Tadashi?” Yamaguchi nodded against him. “Has Ariel lost his voice?” A pause before another nod. “Okay. Don’t worry, I got you. Just try to relax, can you do that for me?” Yamaguchi pushed himself closer to the taller. A silent ‘I’ll try, Tsukki.’ “Thank you, Tadashi.” He pressed a kiss to the boy’s hair before looking back to the others around them.

“I’ll take over telling the story for him. Any protests?” It was silent. Yachi mumbled something but was returned with several glares. “Alright then, where were we?” “Yamaguchi had gone to the girl after your fight.” chimed in Kinoshita. “Right. Thanks, Cubone.” “The fuck did you just call me??” A couple laughs went around the circle and there was an almost inaudible laugh from the boy in Tsukishima’s arms making the blonde smile internally.

“Not important right now. Are you going to let me finish?” Kinoshita rolled his eyes, muttering, “Yeah, whatever.” “Okay, as a warning, this might not be completely accurate since I only know what Tadashi told me but I’ll try my best.” He shifted Yamaguchi a little so it was more comfortable.

Tsukishima cleared his throat. “After our fight, Tadashi went to the girl’s house and she led him away to this abandoned house, claiming that it was this really cool haunted house that she visited all the time… Tadashi really likes paranormal things so he went with her without protest.” He could tell some of the others had caught on. Yamaguchi’s grip on him had tightened. “When he entered the house, she had shut and locked the door. Tadashi finally became aware of what was happening and tried to run away. He, um, he wasn’t quick enough.” There were a few gasps around the circle as it clicked for the rest of the team.

Tsukishima took a breath. “She used like a pole or rock or something to damage his ankle-” “Like Sangwoo?” Nishinoya cut in and Tsukishima sighed. Ennoshita slapped him across the back of the head. “Thank you, Ennoshita. But I suppose yes, like Sangwoo. She knocked him out and tied him up in the basement. His wrists were handcuffed and connected to a bar that went across the ceiling. His knees and ankles were tied together too. As if he could even walk. She had put this rope around his neck, not connected to anything, she would pull on it to see him struggle.” Tsukishima’s eyes were cold as ice and he practically growled his next words, “He was just  _ hanging _ there like a piece of fucking  _ meat _ .”

A hand placed gently on his chest. He couldn’t look down at the boy. “I know, I’m sorry, Tadashi. Just really pissed.” The boy snuggled closer to him. Sugawara spoke up from beside them, “You know, I can’t blame you. That’s fucking disgusting that she did that.” Tsukishima nodded, “And that’s just the beginning. Um- Before I continue, does anyone have any questions?”

Hinata slowly put his hand up and Tsukishima nodded for him to go ahead and ask. “Are you going to tell us her name?” Tsukishima thought about it for a second. He wanted them to know but he didn’t want Tadashi to hear. “Hey, Tadashi, can you cover your ears for me?” Yamaguchi nodded, hands moving to cover his ears. Tsukishima looked back up to the others once he was sure the boy couldn’t hear anything. “Her name is Naoko. Naoko Himari.”

“Oh! I remember her! She was in my class for a little.” Hinata said and Kageyama nodded. “She asked me and Hinata if we knew where you were one time.” Tanaka looked shaken up and Narita nudged him. “You okay?” Tanaka shook his head, “She asked me where you guys were yesterday… I told her about Yamaguchi’s shift. I- I knew she looked a little too happy when I told her but I just thought she had a crush on one of you or something, maybe had to do a group project?” Ennoshita placed a hand on his back. “Hey, it’s okay, you didn’t know.”

“Tanaka.” Tanaka looked back up at Tsukishima. “I don’t blame you for yesterday and I know Tadashi wouldn’t either. It’s not your fault.” Tanaka nodded as if he was trying to convince himself. He leaned his head against Ennoshita’s shoulder. Tsukishima internally smiled at the fact they were together, it took them long enough. It seemed the rest of the second years had the same feeling. “Any more questions?” “Yes, but I’ll save it for later.” said Daichi. Tsukishima nodded and waited for someone else to speak up. No one did so he tapped Yamaguchi’s forehead signaling he could uncover his ears.

“How are you doing, Tadashi?” Yamaguchi shrugged, “A little better I think.” Tsukishima nodded, smiling just slightly because Yamaguchi had actually spoken. He was about to continue the story before Yachi spoke up. “So you only hate me because you’re afraid I might kidnap Tada- Yamaguchi? That’s pretty stupid if you ask me. Or are you afraid Yamaguchi might be in love with me and not you?” She had this stupid smirk as if she just did something. Tsukishima rolled his eyes and was going to respond before Yamaguchi cut him off.

“Tsukki doesn’t hate you because he’s afraid you’ll kidnap me, you’re way too weak to do that. I would easily get away from you, she’s different because she’s a  _ lot _ stronger than you. Probably smarter too. Tsukki hates you because you’re a total bitch, especially to him. I kinda don’t like you too. Plus, he has every right to be cautious about you, the situation is pretty similar. You’re in love with me, for whatever reason, and you despise Tsukki, always trying to get me alone with you. Don’t think I haven’t seen you following us around. Honestly, I’m quite wary of you, I just didn’t show it. And not that it’s your business but I am, in fact,  _ very _ in love with Tsukki. Not you.”

There were plenty of shocked faces around the group, not expecting him to be so calm yet so hostile. Yamaguchi turned back to the tall blonde with a look that said ‘How’d I do, Tsukki? Are you proud of me?’ Tsukishima pressed their foreheads together. “I am so  _ unbelievably _ in love with you, Tadashi, holy shit.” Yamaguchi giggled. He fucking  _ giggled.  _ Yamaguchi will be the cause of Tsukishima’s death one of these days.

Tsukishima pulled away and kissed Yamaguchi’s nose before focusing on the others. “All done with questions?” A few nods. “Okay then. She had him for almost a month. The police were pretty crap with the search so me, my mom and brother, and Tadashi’s mom took matters into our own hands and searched for him on our own.” Yamaguchi had put his head into the crook of Tsukishima's neck.

"Akiteru—my brother—found the house but didn’t go in. He called me, saying he was pretty sure he found Tadashi. I left practice early to meet him, you might remember that, and we went to the house together. We split up, Aki taking the upstairs while I looked in the basement." Tsukishima let out a slightly shaky breath. “What I saw was- it was  _ nauseating _ . He was blindfolded, practically naked, and bleeding. Chunks of his hair had been ripped out and there were claw marks all over his body from where she had dug her nails into his skin. I could see faint lipstick marks too. He looked so pale but his neck had red marks from that  _ fucking  _ rope.”

He looked around the circle. There were horrified faces, faces that looked like they were going to be sick, and faces that were filled with nothing but sympathy. He could feel Yamaguchi’s eyes on him. “My heart dropped to my feet. When- When I went to untie him, he started screaming and flailing, thinking I was her. Um. I tried to tell him to relax, tried to tell him it was me, he didn’t believe me. Akiteru had heard the screams and came down. He looked about two seconds away from throwing up when he saw Tadashi. It took me a bit to get the blindfold off but once I did, Tadashi immediately stopped and broke down, sobbing and apologizing. I untied him with some help from Akiteru. He couldn’t really walk so I carried him.”

He could tell Yamaguchi still felt bad about it. In the way he looked at him, the way he spoke, the way he would flinch away every once in a while. Tsukishima could see it in everything about Yamaguchi. He could also see how fucked up she made Yamaguchi. How terrified she made him, even if the boy tried to hide it. He could see the residue she left on him. A residue that no matter how hard they scrubbed at it, scrubbing until the skin there turned red, it would never  _ fully _ disappear.

But at least when Tsukishima is there, the residue lets down it’s guard and melts just slightly. As Yamaguchi melts into Tsukishima, the sticky residue melts and slides off his skin.

“The whole time we were leaving, he was apologizing. Apologizing for our fight, for going to her, for getting kidnapped, for being so dumb and blind to her intenions. It hurt to hear him talking like that- like it was his fault for what happened. The whole time I tried to get him to stop, tried to reassure him it wasn’t his fault and that I wasn’t mad at him.” Yamaguchi tried to burrow even more into the taller and Tsukishima rubbed his back gently.

“We went to my house to get him cleaned up and Akiteru called Ayumi—Tadashi’s mom—while I brought him to the bathroom and started a bath. I helped him get clean and dressed him into warm clothes. He slowly stopped crying but he was still shaking pretty badly. My mom checked out his ankle and wrapped it correctly, she used to be a nurse, and Akiteru made him some food. He didn’t want to eat but after a little I got him to eat a couple bites.”

Yamaguchi placed a soft kiss to his neck and he smiled just slightly. “We laid together on the couch, watching Tadashi’s favorite movie to try to calm down. When his mom was able to get off work and come over… We all broke down again and just held each other, kneeling on the floor.”

He took a shaky breath before continuing, “You have to understand how hard it was for us while Tadashi was gone. Neither of our fathers were really in the picture when we were younger, Tadashi never met his father but mine left a little after we met the Yamaguchi’s. Our mothers and Aki tried so hard to make up for it. We are a family and we’re all we have. It- It hurt  _ so bad _ to know Tadashi was gone, to not see him for so long and to know there was a chance we would never see him again.” Yamaguchi reached up and wiped a tear he didn’t even realise was there away and kissed his cheek. Tsukishima looked up from the ground but couldn’t stand to meet anyone’s eyes.

He cleared his throat. “They both stayed over that night, Tadashi staying in my room with me and Ayumi staying with my mom. The next day Tadashi got a haircut to kinda hide the missing patches of hair. It took a while for his ankle to heal completely but once it did, he practically begged to come back to school. He really missed you guys.”

Yamaguchi looked at him for a little before turning around to face the group. “I just wanted to say that Tsukki was amazing during my recovery. He rarely left my side and helped me with anything I needed. I would get panic attacks often and Tsukki was always there to help me through it and he got good enough that he could recognize the signs and sometimes be able to stop them before they fully started, like yesterday.” He took a breath. “Um- Do you guys have any questions?”

Daichi raised his hand, “Did she get arrested?” Yamaguchi shook his head. “No… the police said we didn’t have enough proof that it was her who did it.” “That’s bullshit!” spat Sugawara. “How could they say that?!” Daichi put a hand on Sugawara’s arm. Tsukishima spoke up, “Don’t worry, Sugawara, we were outraged too. Akiteru was about ready to punch the officer we were talking to.”

Ennoshita put a hand up, “First of all, I agree, it’s bullshit that the police said that but anyways, if I’m not mistaken we were told Yamaguchi was on a vacation when this happened, right?” Tsukishima nodded, “Yeah, we thought it would be best if you guys didn’t know… Sorry.” “No, no, it’s fine. I had always thought something was weird about the ‘vacation’. Yamaguchi seemed different when he came back, not to mention how much closer you guys stuck together. It makes more sense now.”

From beside Ennoshita, Narita spoke, “This is off topic but us second years were planning on having a party or something and we were going to ask if the rest of you guys wanna come too?” Sugawara clapped, “That’s a great idea!” He turned to the others, “Will you all be able to go?” There were mostly nods or exclaims of agreement but Asahi shook his head, “I already agreed to babysit tonight, sorry guys.” “Aw… okay, we’ll miss you. You’ll be remembered” “I’m not dying, Suga.”

“I have something to do too.” said Daichi. Sugawara frowned and pushed Daichi, “C’mon~ you’re the team captain, isn’t it mandatory for you to go or something? You’ve got to make sure we aren’t getting in trouble.” Daichi laughed, “As vice-captain, I’m sure you can handle keeping them out of trouble, Sugawara.” Sugawara pretended to be offended, a hand going to his chest. “Do you even know me, Daichi? You know better than this.” Daichi thought about it for a few seconds then sighed, “Yeah, you’re right I shouldn’t trust you with that. I’ll go.” They both laughed.

“Me and Kageyama can’t go either, we booked a court to practice on and we can’t waste it.” Sugawara nodded, “Okay so Asahi, Hinata, and Kageyama aren’t going…” He mentally went through a list. “So that means Me, Daichi, Kinoshita, Ennoshita, Narita, Tanaka, Nishinoya and… Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, are you guys going?” He turned to them. Tsukishima was the one to answer, “We’ll check in with Ayumi and my mom to see if there’s any plans already and get back to you later. They’ll probably say yes so put us down for going.”

“Sounds good.” said Sugawara and Daichi almost in unison.

*-*-*

Tsukishima and Yamaguchi were laying on the floor of the backroom in Shimada Mart, their hands lay inbetween them, fingers intertwined. Yamaguchi’s eyes were closed and Tsukishima was watching the rise and fall of his chest. “Tsukki?” Tsukishima hummed. “I was wondering… how was our first actual kiss not super awkward? It was like we just  _ knew _ what to do.” There was a slight blush on Yamaguchi’s freckled cheeks. Tsukishima laughed lightly, “I’m surprised you don’t remember.” Yamaguchi opened his eyes, turning to face the blonde. “What do you mean? What do I not remember?”

“When we were younger, you were  _ so _ scared that you would kiss a girl and it would go terribly. So… you asked me to practice kissing with you.” He smirked as Yamaguchi turned bright red. “Tsukkiii! That’s so embarrassing! I’m so sorry!” Tsukishima laughed, “No, no, don’t apologize. By then I had already realized I liked boys and I was  _ very _ aware of my crush on you. It was like gay heaven for younger me whenever you asked to practice.”

Yamaguchi sat up and hid his red face in his hands. Just to be a punk, Tsukishima continued talking. “And that only progressed my gayness because instead of imagining what it would be like to kiss you, I  _ knew _ what it was like. I couldn’t tell you how many dreams I’ve had of you over the years. There were always a couple soft and cute dreams every once in a while but- Well. Lets just say I was  _ very _ horny in the past. Still am, honestly.” Yamaguchi put a hand over the blonde’s face, “Oh my god, Tsukki, do you ever shut up?”

Yamaguchi removed his hand from the other’s face. Tsukishima smirked, sitting up and grabbing Yamaguchi by the chin, making the boy look at him. “Look me in the eyes and tell me you haven’t had a wet dream about me.” Yamaguchi looked away. Tsukishima moved to straddle Yamaguchi’s lap and pushed gently against his chest so the boy was laying down. “Look me straight in the eyes and tell me you haven’t thought about me like this, asking-  _ begging _ you to fuck me. Tell me you haven’t imagined me moaning oh so loudly while I bounce on your dick.” 

He leaned in to whisper in Yamaguchi’s ear. “Tell me you haven’t wanted to see me whining and pushing my ass back onto your cock, so very desperate for more.” He leaned back, almost laughing at the look on Yamaguchi’s face. “Well?” Yamaguchi gulped. “U-Um well- I would say I haven’t b-but I would be lying.” Tsukishima smiled.

He got off the other and laid back down. “Ah, I forgot to text Ayumi about the party. Hand me my phone will ya?” Yamaguchi seemed like he was in a daze but still handed the phone over. “H-How can you be so effortlessly hot, Tsukki?” Tsukishima shrugged, “Genes maybe? It probably helps that you’re so fucking gay for me. Not complaining of course, you look so pretty all flustered. Well, you’re pretty all the time.” “Tsukki, please, I might combust one of these days.” “That’d be pretty cool to see.” “ _ Tsukki _ .” Tsukishima laughed and started his text to Ayumi.

[You]

Can me and Tadashi go to this party thing with the team?

[You]

There won’t be too many people, not all the team is going

Yamaguchi turned and laid partly on top of him, head resting on the blonde’s shoulder. Both watched for a response. Ayumi had work today so they both knew it might take her a while to respond. Tsukishima kissed his hair gently, mumbling, “You did such a good job today, telling the team. I know it was hard and I’m very proud of you.” Yamaguchi melted into the taller and a chunk of that sticky residue snapped and broke off. “Thanks, Tsukki.” He let a second pass before continuing. “I- um I’m really sorry about what I said during that fight.”

Tsukishima smiled softly, “It’s okay, Tadashi. I know you didn’t mean it.” Yamaguchi was about to say something like ‘it’s not okay!’ or ‘i’m still really sorry!’ but a yawn cut him off. “We can talk about this later if you really want, but for now you should rest. I know you were awake in the middle of the night. You should’ve woken me up so you didn’t have to go through that panic attack by yourself.”

Yamaguchi was surprised, but before he could even think ‘how did you know I had a panic attack’ Tsukishima answered. “I could see it on your face this morning, plus how tired you are today. I know you, Tadashi.”

Yamaguchi is so fucking grateful for Tsukishima Kei.

Yamaguchi raised himself onto his elbows and stared into the blonde’s eyes for a little. He leaned in and brushed their lips together before deepening the kiss, a hand moving to Tsukishima’s cheek. They pushed and pulled gently against each other. Yamaguchi pulled away fractionally, panting slightly and whispered a small, “Fuck.” against Tsukishima’s lips. The taller whined almost inaudibly and pulled him back into the kiss, fingers threading into his hair.

As they continued, slowly getting rougher, Yamaguchi mumbled into the kiss, “God. Mm~ You’re- You’re so addicting, Kei.” Tsukishima moaned softly at the use of his first name. Yamaguchi sat up, pulling Tsukishima into his lap in the process. “Tadashi…” “Fuck- Kei,” Tsukishima rolled his hips, a soft moan escaping both boys. “Kei- Kei, I love you.” “I love you too, Tadashi.”

Tsukishima’s phone buzzed from beside them, effectively scaring both boys. Tsukishima sighed and pressed their foreheads together. “How rude of you to seduce me like that, so distracting.” “Tsukki, you’re so mean. You were totally enjoying it.” “Irrelevant.” They both laughed and Tsukishima picked up his phone as Yamaguchi adjusted them both so they were laying down again.

“What’d she say?” “It’s from Suga. He wants to know if we’re coming.” “Oh. Tell him we’re still working on it.” “Will you take a nap if I do?” “Ha ha, very funny… Yes, I will.” “Good boy.”

Yamaguchi got comfortable against the taller and let out another yawn. “Good night, Tsukki…” Tsukishima kissed his nose. “Sleep well, Tadashi.” It took a few minutes for the boy to fall asleep. Tsukishima’s phone buzzed again and he opened the message.

[Ayumi]

Hey sorry I took so long to reply, work is SWAMPED right now

[Ayumi]

But anyways, I don’t mind if you go to the party

[You]

Thank you

[Ayumi]

Of course, but how is Tadashi?

[You]

He’s okay, right now he’s sleeping but earlier he told the team about what happened with Naoko. I’m so proud of him. I know how hard it was to even tell us

[Ayumi]

Tell him I’m proud of him too, that’s really great he was able to do that

[Ayumi]

Make sure to give him lots of kisses for me too ;)

[You]

Don’t worry, I already did.

[Ayumi]

kEI

[Ayumi]

KEI DOES THIS MEAN WHAT I THINK IT DOES

[You]

;)

[Ayumi]

OMG KEI

Tsukishima smiled and left her to freak out. He quickly texted Sugawara.

[You]

We’re going

[Sugawara]

Great! It’s at Kino’s house, see you there!

Tsukishima turned off his phone and turned to the sleeping boy. He pulled him closer, careful not to wake him, and took a breath, relaxing into the boy. “I love you, Tadashi.” To his surprise, still asleep Yamaguchi mumbled, “…love…too…Tsukki…” and that was fucking adorable.

*-End of Chapter 2-*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will probably make a chapter three so I can write the party thing, I've already got a couple good idea about it.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know if you would like what happens the next morning!  
> I'll let Tsukki rub it in Yachi's face and Yama will tell the team what happened with Naoko so you would get more backstory!


End file.
